Wheel.



No. 627,999. Patented July 4, |899. M. GHATZ & G. w. sHAw.

WHEEL.

(Application fixed oct. 29, 189s.) (N o Nl od e TN: Nonms PETERS oo.. Wcno-u'nw.l wuuma'rom u. c

NITED STATES MARTIN GRATZ, OF BUTTE, AND GEORGE IV. SI-IAV, OF HELENA MONTANA.

WHEEL.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 627,998, dated July 4, 1899.

Application filed October 29, 1898.' Serial No. 694,948. (No model.)

T0 all whom it Lagoon/067%:

l Be it known that we, MARTIN GRATZ, of Butte, in the county of Silver Bow, and GEORGE W. SHAW, of l-Ielena, in the. county of Lewis and Clarke, in the State ot' Montana, citizens of the United States, have invented new and useful Improvements in lVheels, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to vehicle-wheels, and contemplates the provision of a strong and durable wheel which is so constructed as to admit of its spokes being quickly and easily tightened when the same become loose.

. With the foregoing in view the invention will be fully understood fromthe following description and claims when taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a broken diametrical sectionof a wheel constructed in accordance with our invention. Fig. 2 comprises disconnected detail views of the several parts entering into the wheel. Fig. 3 is a broken diam etrical section of a modified construction of wheel.

In the said drawingssimilar letters designate corresponding parts in all of the several views, referring to which^ A is the felly of the wheel. B is the hubbody, and O are the spokes, the-latter being by preference slightly dished, as shown.

The felly A is provided at suitable intervals with the sockets@ for the outer reduced ends of the spokes,which sockets have Ilan ges l) arranged to bear against the inner side of the felly and wings c disposed at opposite sides of the felly, as shown, so as to strengthen the connection of the spokes thereto.

The hub-body B, as best shown in Fig. 3, contains a suitable boxing c and is provided with an outwardly-extending sleeve cl, radially-disposed sockets e, and an annular recess f, which intersects the inner ends of the sockets e and has its outer wall tapered, fora purpose presently to be described. The said body B is also provided, as best shown in Figs. l and 2, with an inner peripheral liange f', the inner side of which 'forms a continuation of the inner side wall of the several spokesockets, for a purpose presently pointed out. In the sockets c of the hub-body metallic ferrules D are snugly fitted after the manner shown-in Fig. l. These ferrules D have their inner end walls g inclined and are designed j and is 'adjustably connected with the hubbody through` the medium of headed bolts F, which take through the apertures j of the sleeve and into threaded sockets 7o in the in* 11er wall ot the said body. By virtue of this construction all of' the spokes, when they are rendered loose by any cause, may be quickly and easily tightened by simply turning the bolts F so as to move the taper-sleeve E inwardly. When the sleeve E is thus moved inwardly, it will move the ferrules D, and consequently the spokes O, outwardly in a radial direction and will bind the spokes against the felly,"thus rendering the wheel stift and rigid.

Gis an outer shell which surrounds the eX- tended sleeve d of the hub-body and serves to close the outer side of said body. This shell G receives within it, but does not engage, the outer wall f2 of the spoke-sockets ot' the body B, and is provided with a flange f3, which surrounds the said outer wall]c2 of the spoke-sockets, as illustrated. Said shell G is detachably connected with the body B by metallic screws l, which take through apertures in the shell-flange f3 and into threaded apertures in the flangef ofthe body B and are arranged between the spokes, as shown. It is obvious that When desired bolts with nuts may be substituted for the screws Z, in which event the apertures in the liange f of the body need not be threaded.

This taper-sleeve E is provided atA suitable intervals with transverse apertures As will be readily observed, the outershell I G slips freely over the sleeve (Z of the body and does not engage any other vpart ot' the body, but presses directly byitsV flange f3 against thespokes. Oonsequentlywhen the .flange of the shell is bolted to Vthe flange f IOO ` wall f4.

of body B the spokes will be iirmly clamped between the ianges f f3, which in practice are about one and one-half inches wide, and a stii and rigid wheel insured.

In Fig. 3 of the drawings we have illustrated a modified construction of Wheel which is similar to that shown in Figs. l and 2, with the exception that the outer wall f4 of the spoke-sockets e' is of the saine diameter as the inner flange f', and the flange f5 of the outer shell G bears against the' outside of the said This modiiied construction also dit'- fers from that shown in Figs. l and 2 in that the screws or bolts l' take through the outer spoke-socket wallf4 as well as through the flange f5 of the shell G.

By reason of the construction disclosed in Figs. l and 2 the spokes maybe better clamped and held in the hub, and we therefore prefer such construction to that illustrated in Fig. 3.

It will be appreciatedi'rom the foregoing that we have provided a wheel which is eX- ceedingly strong and durable both as regards the connection of the spokes with the felly and their connection with the hub. It will also be observed that all of the spokes may be quickly and easily tightened and the wheel rendered sti and rigid when necessary by the adjustment of a single element-viz., the taper sleeve-and this without wearing or breaking down the inner ends of the spokes,

the said ends being protected by the metallic ferrules, in which they are arranged, as before described.

We prefer in practice to form the felly andv tailed description of the several parts of our improved wheel in order to impart a full, clear, and exact understanding of the same. We do not, however, desire to be understood as confining ourselves to the specific construction of the present embodiment ofthe invention, as such changes or modiiications may be made in practice as fairly fall within the scope of our invention.

Having thus described our invention,4 what we claim isl. In a wheel, the combination of a felly, a hub body having an outwardly directed sleeve and also having radial spoke-sockets open at their inner ends and an annular recess communicating with the inner ends of the said sockets, spokes interposed between the felly and the hub-body and'having their inner ends beveled and arranged in the sockets of the latter, the correspondingly-beveled ferrules arranged on the inner ends of the spokes, the taper sleeve arranged in the annular recess of the body and adj ustably connected to said body, and the outer shell surrounding the sleeve of the body and connected to said body, substantially as specified.`

2. A wheel comprising a felly, a hub-body having a sleeve, spoke-sockets, and an annular recess communicating with the inner ends vconnected to said body, a shell arranged on the sleeve of the body and surrounding the v taper sleeve and having a peripheral ilange surrounding one wall ofthe spoke-sockets and bearing directly against the spokes, and detachable transverse connections between theA flanges of the shell and hub-bod y and adapted to clamp the saine against the spokes, substa-ntially as specified.

3. A wheel comprising a felly, a hub-body having an outwardly directed sleeve and spoke-sockets and also having-a peripheral flange forming a continuation of the inner wall oi the spoke-sockets,l spokes interposed between the felly and hub-body and arranged in the sockets of the latter, an outer shell arranged on the sleeve of the body and having a peripheral ange surroundin g the outer wall of the spoke-sockets and bea rin g directly against the spokes, and bolts arranged between the spokes and connecting the flanges of the shell and hub-body so as to clamp the saine against the spokes, substantially as specified.

4. A wheel comprising a felly, a hub having spoke-receiving sockets open at their inner ends and also having a peripheral flange forming a continuation of the inner side wall of the sockets, spokes interposedbetween the felly and hub and arranged in the sockets, a spoke-spreader and tightener arranged in the hub in engagement with the inner ends of the spokes, an outer shell having a flange surlrounding the outer wall of the spoke-sockets and bearing directly against the spokes, and screws taking through the llange of said shell and the flange of the hub-body between the spokes and serving to connect the shell to the body and clamp the flanges on the spokes, substantially as specified.

5. In a wheel, the combination of a felly, a hub body having an outwardly directed sleeve, radial spoke-sockets open at their inner ends, an annular recess communicating with the inner ends of said sockets, and a peripheral flange forming a continuation of the inner side wall of the sockets, spokes interposed between the felly and hub and arranged in the sockets and having their inner ends beveled, correspondingly-beveled ferrules arranged on theinner ends of the spokes, the taper sleeve arranged in the annular recess of the hub-body and adjustably connected to said body, the outer shell surrounding the sleeve of the body and having a flange surrounding the outer wall of the spoke-sockets and bearing directly against the spokes, and screws taking through said llange of the shell and the ilange of the hub-body between the spokes and serving to connect the shell to IOO IIO

terposed between the felly and the hub-body the body and clamp'the flanges on the spokes, substantially as specified.

6. A Wheel comprising a hub-body having an outwardly-directed sleeve and also having radial spoke-sockets open at their inner ends and an annular recess communicating with the inner ends of the said sockets, spokes inand having their inner ends beveled, the taper sleeve arranged in the annular recess of the body, connecting-bolts extending through the taper sleeve from the outer end thereof and having threaded inner portions let into screw-tapped sockets in the body, and the outer shell surrounding the outer end of the hands in presence of two subscribing Witzo DGSSGS.

YMARTIN GRATZ,

GEORGE W. si-1AW.

Witnesses to the signature of M. Gratz: MARTIN MOEFAT, HENRY WALTERs.

XVitnesses to the signature of G. XV. Shaw:

C. C. MCALLISTER,

H. T. SWENsoN. 

